An American traveller who left her ATM card in a Kerala beach town got it back after a DHL worker drove for hours in an auto-rickshaw to deliver it. The gesture, made just before her flight and without taking money, drew praise online.
An American tourist who shares travel vlogs from around the world on Instagram, recently recounted a remarkable experience from her solo journey through Kerala. The story, now winning hearts online, centres around a forgotten ATM card, a frantic search, and a local man’s extraordinary effort to return it.
The text displayed on her viral video read, “A stranger I met in Kerala drove 6 hours in an auto-rickshaw to return my ATM card.”
According to the traveller, she had accidentally left her debit card inside an ATM in a small coastal town in Kerala. Unaware of the mistake, she continued her journey and only realised the card was missing after arriving in Thiruvananthapuram, nearly five hours away.
Earlier that day, she had visited a DHL office and exchanged contact details with one of the employees, as many aspects of her travels were being coordinated through WhatsApp. Realising the seriousness of the situation, she immediately reached out to the employee and asked whether he could check if the card was still at the ATM.
As she waited anxiously for an update, she later joked that she was praying to “every Hindu God and Goddess” she could think of, hoping the card had not disappeared.
To her amazement, the debit card was discovered nearly a day later, still resting on top of the ATM machine. But recovering it presented a fresh challenge. With just 36 hours remaining before her flight out of India and courier services unavailable on a Sunday, there seemed to be no practical way to get it back in time.
Late that night, the traveller received a phone call asking her to step outside. Waiting for her was the DHL employee she had contacted, accompanied by two friends. The trio had travelled approximately six hours in an auto-rickshaw to personally hand over the card.
According to her account, the round trip lasted nearly 14 hours.
What moved her even more was what happened next. When she offered money to compensate him for the effort and travel expenses, he politely refused. Instead, he encouraged her to save the money for the rest of her trip, knowing she was travelling across India on a limited budget.
The traveller later revealed that the man’s name was Krishna — a coincidence that struck many viewers, as Krishna is also the name of the Hindu deity associated with love, compassion and protection.
Her heartwarming story quickly spread across social media, drawing thousands of reactions from people touched by the selfless act.
Many users described the gesture as a powerful reminder that kindness still exists in abundance. Others said they hoped the goodwill shown by Krishna would return to him many times over.
Several users also pointed to Kerala’s famous “God’s Own Country” slogan, saying stories like this perfectly capture the warmth and generosity for which the state is known.
Others echoed the timeless Indian philosophy of “Atithi Devo Bhava” – meaning “the guest is equivalent to God”.